Author: Nico Romano

The Swiss canton of St Gallen has introduced a revised motor vehicle tax that in many cases imposes higher charges on electric vehicles than on comparable petrol cars, prompting criticism from drivers and political groups who say the reform undermines climate objectives. Under the new bonus-malus system, which took effect on Jan. 1, 2026, authorities calculate the levy based partly on vehicle weight and engine output. While the framework is intended to reward efficient models and penalise inefficient ones in a “technology-neutral” manner, the methodology has led to higher base taxes for many battery-electric vehicles because their heavy battery packs…

Fiat has introduced updates to its Topolino electric quadricycle, adding a new Corallo exterior color and a larger digital instrument cluster as the compact urban vehicle maintains its leading position in Europe’s quadricycle market. The new Corallo shade, a coral-toned finish, joins the existing Verde Vita option, expanding the model’s color palette to two choices. Fiat said the addition is intended to reinforce the vehicle’s urban lifestyle positioning. Orders for the updated Topolino opened on Feb. 13, 2026. The company has also replaced the previous 3.5-inch display with a new 5.7-inch digital cluster housed within an 8.3-inch panel area. The…

Chinese bus manufacturer Yutong said it has delivered 68 battery-electric buses to northern Italy for deployment during a major winter sports event in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo. While the company’s statement refers to a “world-class winter sports event,” the timing and location correspond with the Winter Olympic Games. Yutong is not listed as an official partner of the Games. The buses were delivered to Trentino Trasporti, which operates public transport services in the Trentino region, where several competition venues are located, including the cross-country skiing stadium in Tesero. See also: Yutong Denies Remote Control Claims Over Electric Buses After Norwegian…

Ferrari has named its first all-electric production model Luce, replacing the previously used working title “Elettrica,” and has offered new details on the vehicle’s interior and driver interface as it advances toward market launch. The company confirmed the name in a social media post while highlighting the cabin design of the Luce, which Ferrari described as introducing “a new, cross-disciplinary design language into an authentic Ferrari experience.” The interior was developed in collaboration with the San Francisco-based creative collective LoveFrom. See also: Everything You Should Know About Ferrari 849 Testarossa PHEV Specifications “Designed in close collaboration with the creative collective…

Italian motorway operator Autostrade per l’Italia has awarded E.ON Drive Infrastructure Italy three lots to build an ultra-fast electric vehicle charging network across major motorway corridors, the companies said. Under the contract, 18 motorway service areas will be equipped with a total of 104 ultra-fast charging points by the end of 2026. The sites will be located along some of Italy’s busiest east–west and north–south routes, including the A4 Turin–Trieste and A14 Bologna–Taranto motorways. Each service area will host between four and eight Alpitronic HYC400 chargers, with individual charging points delivering up to 400 kilowatts, E.ON said. The installations are…

Automotive Cells Company (ACC), the battery joint venture backed by Stellantis, Mercedes-Benz and TotalEnergies, has abandoned plans to build battery cell factories in Germany and Italy, ending projects that had been on hold for nearly a year. The decision affects proposed gigafactories in Kaiserslautern, Germany, and Termoli, Italy. Italy’s metalworkers’ union UILM said over the weekend that ACC management had informed employee representatives the two projects had been “definitively shelved.” ACC later confirmed that the conditions required to restart the projects, paused since May 2024, were unlikely to be met. ACC had originally halted work on the two sites while…

The Polestar 5 made its first public appearance on a driving circuit over the weekend, with two electric prototypes taking to the frozen track at the FAT International Ice Race in Zell am See, Austria. The appearance marked the first time the long-awaited electric grand tourer has been shown in action before a public audience. The two prototypes, each delivering a combined 650 kilowatts of output, ran on an ice-covered airfield circuit in the Austrian Alps, highlighting the model’s performance credentials under extreme winter conditions. See also: Polestar Expands Plug & Charge Access, Integrates Tesla Superchargers Across Europe One of…

Stellantis said it is recording impairments and charges totalling about €22.2 billion, largely linked to its electric vehicle business, as new chief executive Antonio Filosa moves to scale back the group’s previously ambitious electrification strategy and refocus on customer demand. Filosa, who took over as CEO in June 2025, has been reassessing targets set under former chief executive Carlos Tavares, cancelling products deemed unlikely to achieve profitable volumes. Among them is a planned battery-electric version of the Ram 1500 pickup, which Stellantis said no longer aligns with market demand or the current U.S. regulatory environment. The shift follows the expiry…

Chief executives of Europe’s two largest carmakers, Volkswagen and Stellantis, have jointly called on European Union policymakers to strengthen support for domestically produced electric vehicles as the bloc seeks to reduce its dependence on China and the United States. Volkswagen Chief Executive Oliver Blume and Stellantis executive Antonio Filosa said EU climate and industrial policy should prioritise local production and include financial incentives for battery-electric vehicles manufactured in Europe. “Every battery-electric vehicle ‘Made in Europe’ should receive a CO₂ bonus,” they said in a joint document shared with several European newspapers, including Germany’s Handelsblatt. See also: Stellantis Says Future Europe…

Hyundai Motor Group’s premium brand Genesis is entering the Italian market, extending its European expansion with a lineup of three battery-electric vehicles, the company said. Genesis will launch in Italy with the Genesis GV60, the Electrified GV70, and the Electrified G80, marking the brand’s first step into southern Europe. The move follows Genesis’ initial European debut in 2021 in Germany, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. See also: Genesis Delays GV90 Electric Flagship to Second Half of 2026 – Report The Italian rollout will be supported by what Genesis described as a “curated retail business model,” focused on selected flagship locations…

IKEA has launched a new initiative to decarbonise its road freight operations in Italy, partnering with logistics provider LC3 Trasporti to roll out a fleet of battery-electric heavy-duty trucks. Under the project, more than 10 Mercedes-Benz eActros 600 vehicles will be deployed by the third quarter of 2026, with two units already in daily operation. The trucks will be used for container transport to and from the ports of Genoa and La Spezia, as well as for deliveries to IKEA’s distribution centre in Piacenza and stores across northern Italy. See also: JET Charge Completes Major EV Charging Rollout for IKEA…

The Bucharest city administration has announced the purchase of 22 new trolleybuses equipped with onboard batteries that allow them to travel at least 20 kilometres without connection to overhead lines, as the Romanian capital continues to modernise its public transport fleet. Public transport operator Societatea de Transport București (STB) will begin extensive testing of the vehicles, followed by individual acceptance procedures, before launching them into passenger service in the spring, Romania Insider reported. The trolleybuses are scheduled to operate on line 86. China’s Yutong has been selected to supply the vehicles. The 12-metre Yutong U12 trolleybuses can carry up to…

BMW said plans to start U.S. production of its next-generation electric vehicles under the Neue Klasse programme are back on track after earlier concerns triggered by a construction halt at a key battery supplier’s plant. Japanese battery maker AESC, a core supplier for BMW’s Neue Klasse platform, paused construction last June of a battery cell factory in Florence, South Carolina, near BMW’s main U.S. plant. The move, attributed at the time to uncertainty over U.S. economic policy and market conditions, raised doubts about whether BMW could begin production as scheduled. The Neue Klasse architecture, which features an 800-volt electrical system,…

The fully electric Mini Cooper Electric has received a second major safety accolade in 2025, after being named Euro NCAP’s “Best in Class for Safest City & Supermini of the Year 2025.” The award follows a five-star Euro NCAP rating published in March, when the model — tested as the three-door Mini Cooper E — achieved strong results across adult occupant, child occupant and active safety categories. Euro NCAP said the rating applies across the Cooper E production range covered by the tested VINs. See also: Mini BEV Deliveries Rise 87.9% in 2025, Accounting for Over One-Third of Global Sales…

A debate has reopened in Europe over how much noise electric vehicles should be allowed to make, with the European Commission pushing to restrict sounds beyond what is required for safety, while parts of the automotive industry and several member states argue that additional noise should remain permissible. According to a report by German technology outlet Heise, industry groups are lobbying for greater flexibility to allow electric vehicles to emit sounds comparable to combustion-engine cars. The World Association of Automobile Manufacturers (OICA) is seeking room for what it describes as emotionally driven exterior sounds that go beyond the mandatory Acoustic…

Chinese battery manufacturer Sunwoda said a subsidiary is facing a lawsuit from a Geely Holding Group–affiliated company over alleged quality issues in battery cells supplied for electric vehicles, marking a rare legal dispute in China’s EV supply chain. In a stock exchange filing, Sunwoda said its subsidiary, Sunwoda Electric Vehicle Battery Co Ltd, has been sued by VREMT, a battery system company under the Geely umbrella, which is seeking compensation of 2.31 billion yuan ($330 million). The claim relates to battery cells supplied between June 2021 and December 2023 that VREMT alleges had quality defects. The case has not yet…

Hyundai Motor Europe will debut its largest electric vehicle to date at the 2026 Brussels Motor Show, marking a key milestone in the automaker’s electrification strategy as it accelerates its transition toward a fully electric lineup. The new model, which will feature 800-volt charging architecture, is set to make its world premiere at the event running from January 9 to 18, 2026. It will become the flagship of Hyundai’s European electric vehicle range, complementing existing models from the compact INSTER to the large IONIQ 9. Hyundai said the unveiling will form part of a broader presentation outlining its European electrification…

Italy’s competition authority has closed investigations into BYD, Stellantis, Tesla and Volkswagen over alleged misleading claims about electric vehicle performance, after the companies agreed to revise how they communicate key information to consumers. The probe, launched in February by Italy’s competition watchdog AGCM, examined whether the automakers engaged in unfair commercial practices in the way they presented information on EV driving range, battery capacity degradation and limitations contained in battery warranty terms. According to the authority, the companies’ websites had provided “generic and sometimes contradictory information” about vehicle range, without sufficiently explaining the factors — such as driving style, temperature…

Turkish electric bus manufacturer Karsan has won a tender to supply 42 battery-electric articulated buses for the Italian port city of Bari, the company said, strengthening its footprint in one of Europe’s growing zero-emission public transport markets. The contract, launched under a Europe-wide tender in May, covers the delivery of 18-metre e-ATA 18 buses, which are scheduled to be handed over in June 2026. The vehicles will operate on Bari’s four planned high-frequency Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) lines, designed to provide fast and frequent public transport services across the city. See also: Karsan Delivers 17 Electric Buses to Mersin Under…

Renault has begun taking pre-orders for the Twingo E-Tech Electric in selected European markets as part of its R-Pass pre-order programme, with the battery-electric city car initially offered in the top-spec “Techno” trim. The Twingo E-Tech Electric Techno is priced from €21,090 before government incentives and will be available to R-Pass customers in Germany, Belgium, Spain, France, Italy and the Netherlands from December 16. Orders will open to the wider public on January 8, 2026, Renault said. The Techno trim is the highest specification for the electric Twingo and includes Renault’s OpenR Link infotainment system with Google built-in, adaptive cruise…